A University of its own kind
Having engaged in a business module during my formal education, I never imagined that I would jump into the creative world of the advertising industry on any given day. To be honest, I had little idea about the industry in the first place. However, a short internship as a ‘Client Servicing Executive’ at Prisma Advertising Agency gave me insight into this dynamic industry, and it only sparked my interest to explore further.
I clearly recall my first major work was launching a campaign for Suzuki Baleno (2016). Since then, I have had the opportunity to work with multiple brands at Prisma, as well as during my time at JWT Thompson Nepal, such as Saffola Oil (Marico India), Jagdamba Steels, Asian Paints, NMB Bank, Hero MotoCorp (NGM), UNICEF, and Whirlpool, to name a few.
One of the campaigns that have been etched in my memory is for a ‘Royale Health Shield,’ a unique anti-bacterial product by Asian Paints, where I had the opportunity to lead this high-value project at JWT. Launching a unique product in the market is always a daunting task for any brand; hence, we initiated by gaining first-hand consumer feedback in order to gain key insights for precise product positioning and communication. The major challenge on our table was to tailor two different qualities in our communication, i.e., ‘Aesthetics’ and ‘Anti-bacterial property.’ Ultimately, our team dug deep to come up with clever messaging, and the rest followed. We launched a 360-degree campaign on an allocated timeline, and it performed decently for the brand in terms of sales and building brand equity. The campaign was a huge success, gaining applause for its strategic and creative approach. Personally, it was an important learning experience in my career.
Looking back, the journey has been so fulfilling that it provided valuable opportunities to work and learn from industry experts. The hands-on experiences one gets in an agency are relevant to any business you pursue in your career that one could arguably label it as a ‘university of its own kind.’ Here, I would like to share a few aspects that I learned in an agency career and hope it helps spark interest in youths towards the brand and marketing domain:
Creative Thinking
What’s more pleasing than utilizing creativity as a primary tool to promote products and services for your client? It never gets boring. Advertising agencies thrive on creativity and innovation. Be it brainstorming a TVC concept during a tea break or a campaign tagline during late hours, working in such an environment can be inspiring and fulfilling for those who enjoy thinking outside the box. At a time when creative content creation is taking over the world, you could be the one to look out for next.
Diverse Project Management
Agencies work with a range of clients from different industries, providing employees with the opportunity to work on various projects and campaigns, which keeps the work dynamic and interesting. Handling various accounts means you'll develop a wide range of skills, from understanding different target audiences to mastering various marketing strategies and tools. These attributes make you more agile and adaptable to any situation that arises in your business and services.
Communication & Networking
Collaboration with a diverse range of professionals can significantly enhance a communication network and broaden its reach. By working with local and global clients, media outlets, artists, vendors, freelancers, etc., an individual can gain various perspectives and expertise, as well as crucial skills to deal with industry experts simultaneously.
Team Collaboration
Working in an agency involves a lot of teamwork, fostering a collaborative spirit and providing opportunities to learn from colleagues with different expertise. An agency has different departments such as Client Servicing, Creative, Media & PR, Event Management, Digital Marketing, and so on. Each department plays a unique and essential role in the success of a campaign or project. An individual has to engage with these departments to execute a successful project or campaign, be it short or long term. Hence, developing team management, and decision-making while panning out a clear vision for projects with internal stakeholders will add value to your leadership attributes.
Conclusion
The experiences and learnings entirely depend upon the individual. However, with the skill sets mentioned above, one could go on and foster in any business organization or take entrepreneurial journeys of their own. A seasoned agency individual is equipped to handle and manage any obstacles that come their way and take their project across the line in a given time frame.
Therefore, an advertising agency is a perfect domain that freshers or young entrepreneurs could/should look for to develop high-value skills that will support in elevating their career in any industry.
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Bisham Ghimire is the founder of Four Corners, a MarComm agency. He holds a postgraduate degree from the University of Wales and has been active in Nepal's brand & communication domain since 2016, with experience at Prisma Advertising, JWT Thompson Nepal, Reliance Life Insurance, and Daraz. Visit his LinkedIn profile here.
